Profit and loss template for a small business

Download the template

• Profit and loss template, Excel (.xlsx). Two sheets: a blank template that adds itself up, and the worked example below.
• Profit and loss template, CSV (.csv). The same lines with a note on what goes in each, for any spreadsheet program. A CSV file cannot hold formulas, so you add up the totals yourself.

Both are free to download and we do not ask for your details.

What a profit and loss statement shows

GOV.UK says a company's profit and loss account "shows the company's sales, running costs and the profit or loss it has made over the financial year".¹ You can draw one up for any period, such as a month, a quarter or a year. For what each line means, see How to read a profit and loss statement.

How to fill it in

1. Set the period. Write the start and end dates at the top. For a company, the year usually runs to its year end; see Financial year, tax year and company year end.
2. Enter your sales for the period on the turnover line.
3. Enter the cost of what you sold, such as stock or materials, on the cost of sales line.
4. Enter your running costs on the overhead lines. Use "Other costs" for anything that does not fit, and keep personal spending out.
5. Enter any interest on loans and overdrafts.
6. Add the tax line only if you run a limited company, and only once the figure is known from the tax return.
7. Fill in the previous period if you have it, so you can compare.

Your bookkeeping records are where these figures come from. A sole trader must keep records of all sales and income and all business expenses.² A company must keep accounting records that include all money received and spent.³

Worked example (example figures)

The figures below are made up to show how the template fits together. They are not from a real business.

Worked example: profit and loss for one year (example figures, not a real business)

Line	Example figure
Turnover (sales)	£120,000
Cost of sales	(£48,000)
Gross profit	£72,000
Staff costs	(£30,000)
Premises	(£9,000)
Travel and motor	(£2,000)
Advertising and marketing	(£3,000)
Office, phone, internet and software	(£1,800)
Insurance and bank charges	(£1,700)
Accountancy, legal and other professional fees	(£2,500)
Training and subscriptions	(£500)
Depreciation	(£2,000)
Other costs	(£1,000)
Total overheads	(£53,500)
Operating profit	£18,500
Interest payable	(£1,000)
Profit before tax	£17,500

Brackets mean a cost taken off. Gross profit is £120,000 less £48,000, which is £72,000, or 60% of sales. Take off £53,500 of overheads and £1,000 of interest and the profit before tax is £17,500.

The example stops before tax on purpose. The profit on a P&L is not always the profit that is taxed. For example, GOV.UK says a company cannot deduct capital expenses, such as buying a van it will use for years, when working out its taxable profit, although it may be able to claim capital allowances instead.⁴ That is why depreciation in the template has a note to ask your accountant. A company's Corporation Tax comes from its Company Tax Return.

If you are a sole trader

Leave the Corporation Tax line blank. A sole trader pays Income Tax on business profits after taking off allowable expenses.⁵ The records behind those figures are kept for the Self Assessment tax return.² GOV.UK's Expenses if you're self-employed (read 22 October 2026) lists the kinds of costs a self-employed person can claim, such as office costs, travel, staff, stock, insurance and bank charges, premises, and advertising.⁵ The template's overhead lines broadly follow those groups.

GOV.UK's Business records if you're self-employed (read 22 October 2026) also says that from the 2024 to 2025 tax year, cash basis is the default way for the self-employed to keep accounts. On the cash basis you record income when you receive the money and expenses when you pay the bill.² If you use the cash basis, enter your figures that way.

What this template is not

• Not statutory accounts. GOV.UK says a company's annual accounts must meet either International Financial Reporting Standards or UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice, and must include a balance sheet, a profit and loss account and notes.¹ The law sets out the formats for small company accounts.⁶ Our template borrows the main lines of one of those formats (turnover, cost of sales, gross profit, interest payable and tax) but splits the running costs our own way.
• Not tax advice. It does not work out what tax is due.
• Not a cash flow forecast. A profit does not mean the money is in the bank. See Making a profit but short of cash.

When to ask for help

This part is our judgement, not a rule. If you find yourself filling this in every month to keep track of the business, that is what management accounts are for. If the records the figures come from keep falling behind, a bookkeeper may help.